Mark Dantonio Named George Munger College Coach of the Year Semifinalist

Dantonio has led the Spartans to a 7-3 record and No. 17 ranking in the College Football Playoff Top 25.

Nov. 16, 2017

EAST LANSING, Mich. – For the fourth time in his career, Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio has been named a semifinalist for the George Munger College Coach of the Year, the Maxwell Football Club announced Thursday afternoon.

One of 16 semifinalists for the award, Dantonio has led the youthful Spartans to a 7-3 overall record this season, including a 5-2 mark in the Big Ten. MSU is currently ranked No. 17 in the College Football Playoff Top 25, and is also ranked in the Associated Press (No. 22) and Amway Coaches (No. 24) Polls.

Earlier this season, Dantonio was named one of 20 coaches on both the Paul “Bear” Bryant Coach of the Year and Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award Watch Lists.

Although the Spartans feature one of the youngest rosters in the nation with 77 underclassmen, including 13 starters, Michigan State has defeated two AP Top 10 teams this season. MSU toppled No. 7 Michigan on the road in Ann Arbor, 14-10, on Oct. 7, and beat No. 7 Penn State on the last play of the game with a 34-yard field goal, 27-24, on Nov. 4 in Spartan Stadium.

Now in his 11th season as head coach of the Spartans, Dantonio owns a 97-45 (.683) record in East Lansing. He has won the most Big Ten Championships (three) and bowl games (four) of any Spartan head coach and also ranks first with nine bowl appearances. Dantonio is the only active Big Ten coach to win multiple Big Ten Championships (2010, 2013, 2015), claim a victory in the Rose Bowl (2014), and coach in the College Football Playoff (2015).

The second-winningest coach in school history with 97 victories, trailing only Hall of Famer Duffy Daugherty (109), Dantonio also ranks first in program history in conference winning percentage (.659, 58-30 record, minimum 10 games), second in Big Ten wins (58), home wins (58) and AP Top 25 victories
(19), tied for second in AP Top 25 finishes (six), and fifth in overall winning percentage (.683).

Dantonio was also a semifinalist for the George Munger College Coach of the Year Award in 2008, and was a finalist in 2013 and 2015.